VIEWS ON THE SEMANTIC MEANING OF PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS

SCIENCE AND INNOVATION INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL VOLUME 4 ISSUE 10 OCTOBER 2025 ISSN: 2181-3337 | SCIENTISTS.UZ 14 VIEWS ON THE SEMANTIC MEANING OF PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS S.R. Usmanaliyeva English language teacher at School No. 50 in Samarkand city https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17363689 Abstract. In linguistics, phraseology is the study of ready-made or fixed expressions consisting of idioms, phrasal verbs, and other multi-word lexical units. These expressions convey a meaning that is clearer or different from the combined meanings of their parts when used separately, and this meaning cannot be predicted in advance. For example, the phrase 'Dutch auction' consists of the words Dutch and auction (a public sale where goods are sold to the highest bidder), but its meaning is not 'a sale taking place in the Netherlands where goods are sold to the highest bidder.' Instead, this phrase refers to any auction where prices decrease rather than increase. Therefore, sometimes phraseological units or idioms convey an opposite meaning, known as a transformed meaning. Keywords: phraseology, linguistics, evaluative functions, unrealistic event, motivated and unmotivated. Introduction Phraseology is a branch of linguistics that studies various ready-made phrases, fixed expressions naming various objects and phenomena. They exist in the language as ready-made units. We cannot change their structure and cannot replace their components. Phraseology (from Greek φράσις phrasis – "manner of speech" and -λογία -logia – "study") is a scientific direction in linguistics that developed in the 20th century. Its beginning is marked by the concept of "locutions phraseologiques" (phraseological expressions) by Charles Bally, which entered Russian lexicology and lexicography in the 1930s-1940s and later developed in Eastern European countries. From the late 1960s, it became established in (Eastern) German linguistics and also began to be studied occasionally in English linguistics. In Great Britain and other countries of Western Europe, phraseology has developed steadily over the last twenty years. The regular meetings and publications of the European Society of Phraseology and the European Association for Lexicography (EURALEX) confirm the broad interest in phraseology in Europe. Scientific research in the field of phraseology in Europe is much more active than in North America. About the main methods of translating phraseological units that remain relevant for modern translation studies, based on information from a scientific publication. The author outlines the various viewpoints of prominent linguists and translation scholars who have studied this important issue. Nowadays, the translation of phraseological units is an important topic for modern translation studies. Therefore, this topic is being discussed by translation scholars, and this is directly related to the necessity for the translator to correctly interpret the meaning of the entire phrase or group of words, as well as to choose an equivalent that adequately corresponds to it to translate a specific phraseological unit sufficiently. The translator must be able to identify translation methods and express the connotative (hidden) meaning and evaluative functions of the entire phrase. In our opinion, it is appropriate to provide a precise definition of the concept of a phraseological unit proposed by (Kuzmin, 2007). SCIENCE AND INNOVATION INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL VOLUME 4 ISSUE 10 OCTOBER 2025 ISSN: 2181-3337 | SCIENTISTS.UZ 15 According to many prominent and great translation scholars, phraseological units may fully or partially correspond to units in the target text, and also, due to the similarity of the analyzed phraseological units to free word combinations, they can lead to incorrect associations during the translation process. Phraseological units have a specific meaning, which may fully or partially differ from the meaning of the phraseological unit in the target text. From the perspective of Komissarov and Koralova (1999), the complex semantic structure and cultural specificity of these units make it difficult to find an equivalent in another language. The most relevant reason is whether a phraseological unit is motivated (grounded) or unmotivated (unclear). For example, the phraseological unit "to have a heart of gold" is translated into Uzbek as "oltin yurak», while the phrase "to have a heart of stone" corresponds to the Uzbek expression "toshyurak". Let us give examples of English phraseological units and reveal their semantic meaning: "When pigs fly" -- its direct translation is "When pigs fly". We know that in life, pigs do not fly, so this is used regarding unrealistic events. In Uzbek, there is an expression that corresponds to this phrase, and it is "Tuyani dumi yerga tekkanda" (When the camel's tail touches the ground). That is, we know that a camel's tail is short, and for it to touch the ground is an unrealistic event. "Break a leg" - its direct translation is "Break your leg". The translation of this phrase gives a negative meaning, but in reality, it expresses the meaning of "Omadingni bersin" (May you have luck). "Have a sweet tooth" -- its direct translation is "To have a sweet tooth". This phrase can be guessed, meaning it expresses the meaning "Shirinlikxo'r" (Sweet-liker). "Strike while the iron is hot" -- its direct translation corresponds to the Uzbek expression "Temirni qizig'ida bos" (Strike the iron while it's hot), and its translation is the same. We know that it is easy to shape iron when it is hot, but difficult when it cools down. In this sense, it is translated and means the same in both languages. "As cold as ice" - its translation into Uzbek is "Muzdek sovuq" (Cold as ice). This expression of ours indicates that the water is at the level of ice, meaning it is very cold. It gives the same translation and meaning in English and Uzbek. "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched." - Its direct translation is "Don't count your chickens before they hatch". In Uzbek, there is also an expression that gives this meaning, it is "Jo'jani kuzda sanaymiz" (We count the chicks in autumn). It gives the same meaning in both languages. "Act one's age," this is translated into Uzbek as "Yoshingga yarasha o'zingni tut" (Behave according to your age). The translation almost directly matches in English and Uzbek. "Fish in the air" - its direct translation is the Uzbek "Havodagi baliq" (Fish in the air). We know that this is used in a figurative sense; fish do not live in the air but in water. This phraseological unit is used in Uzbek in the meaning of "Vaqtni behudaga sarflamoq" (To waste time in vain). "The rotten apple injures its neighbors." Its direct translation is the Uzbek "Chirigan olma atrofidagilariga zarar keltiradi" (The rotten apple harms those around it). This phraseological unit corresponds to the Uzbek expression "Tirraqi buzoq podani buzadi" (The unruly calf ruins the herd). SCIENCE AND INNOVATION INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL VOLUME 4 ISSUE 10 OCTOBER 2025 ISSN: 2181-3337 | SCIENTISTS.UZ 16 "Beauty is but skin deep." Its direct translation is the Uzbek "Go'zallik ammo terisi chuqur" (Beauty but its skin is deep). Of course, this is given in a figurative sense. In Uzbek, it corresponds to the expression "Tashqi ko'rinish aldamchi bo'ladi" (External appearance can be deceptive). Thus, it is very difficult to precisely define the meaning of a phraseological unit because it is connected with many linguistic and extra-linguistic, logical and psychological, historical and philosophical aspects. Vocabulary and syntax, or word wealth (phraseology as part of vocabulary) and grammar, have traditionally been considered separate aspects of language in language teaching (Hoey, 2005; Romer, 2009). However, the number of scholars in various theoretical directions within applied linguistics and second language acquisition is increasingly growing, and they emphasize that these two aspects are actually inseparable (for example, cognitive linguists, constructionists, and corpus linguists). The importance of phraseological research is constantly debated, as it manifests the interconnection between language and society. The article is devoted to the issue of the meaning of word components within the structure of a phraseological unit. Taking all possible perspectives into account, the authors focus on the following four types of word components in phraseological units: Real words - word components that have a literal meaning; Potential words - word components that have a weak (vague) meaning; "Former" words - word components that have a reinterpreted meaning; "Ghost-words" - word components that do not exist in the language. Phraseology is considered the science that studies stable word combinations, phraseological units or phraseologisms, which are not formed based on structural and semantic model variants and have complex semantic properties. Phraseological units (idioms) fill the gaps left by the lexical system of the language and are often the only expression for things, qualities, states, circumstances, when other signs are absent. Indeed, the narrow meaning of the concept of "phraseology" currently mainly includes idiomatic expressions (phrases). Conclusion In a broader sense, it implies phrasemes (word combinations), which include collocations (word combinations) and idioms. For some languages like German and Spanish this terminology is not so incomprehensible, for other languages like Italian it still needs to be systematized (see: Schafroth, Imperiale and Autelli, work in progress). As for German terminology, Burger's classification (2015) is one of the most well-known. It primarily distinguishes between referential (referring to abstract things), structural (structure), and communicative (communication) phrasemes. REFERENCES 1. Alieva, Z. A. PHRASEOLOGY - AS A LINGUISTIC DISCIPLINE. - Online source: World Bulletin of Social Sciences (WBSS), 2023.- P. 27. 2. Autelli, E. The origins of the term phraseology.- Universität Innsbruck, Österreich, erica.autel[email protected] 2021 P. 7. 3. N.Z.Nasrullaeva. The main problems of English phraseology. Textbook. -- Samarkand: "Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages" publishing house, 2024. -- P. 3. SCIENCE AND INNOVATION INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL VOLUME 4 ISSUE 10 OCTOBER 2025 ISSN: 2181-3337 | SCIENTISTS.UZ 17 4. Subbotina, V. Kazakh-British Technical University, English Language Department , Tole bi street 59, Almaty city, 050000, Kazakhstan 5. Zerkina N. English phraseology in teaching: Interrelation of theory and practice. Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinskaya region, 455038, Russia bNosov Magnitogorsk State Technical University, the Head of International Affairs Office.